Scientists create biological ‘artificial intelligence’ system,PROTEUS

Australian scientists, primarily at the University of Sydney’s Charles Perkins Centre, have developed a groundbreaking biological artificial intelligence system named PROTEUS (PROTein Evolution Using Selection) that can design and evolve molecules with new or improved functions directly inside mammalian cells.

How PROTEUS Works

• Biological AI via Directed Evolution: PROTEUS harnesses the technique of directed evolution, which mimics natural evolution by iteratively selecting molecules with desired traits. Unlike traditional directed evolution that operates mainly in bacterial cells and takes years, PROTEUS accelerates this process drastically—from years to just weeks—directly within mammalian cells.

• Problem-Solving Mode: Similar to how users input prompts to AI platforms, PROTEUS can be tasked with complex biological problems with uncertain solutions, for example, how to efficiently switch off a human disease gene in the body. It then explores millions of molecular sequences to find molecules highly adapted to solve that problem.

• Mammalian Cell Environment: The ability to evolve molecules inside mammalian cells is unique and significant because it allows developing molecules that function well in the human body’s physiological context, improving therapeutic relevance.

Applications and Implications

• Drug Development and Gene Therapies: PROTEUS can create highly specific research tools and gene therapies, including improving gene editing technologies like CRISPR by enhancing their effectiveness and precision.

• Molecule Enhancement: Researchers have already used PROTEUS to develop better-regulated proteins and nanobodies (small antibody fragments) that detect DNA damage, which is critical in cancer.

• Broad Potential: The technology is not limited to these examples and holds promise for designing virtually any protein or molecule with enhanced or new functions to solve biotech and medical challenges

This fusion of biological systems and AI represents a shift in bioengineering, enabling rapid, in vivo molecular evolution that was previously impossible. PROTEUS dramatically shortens development timelines for novel medicines and biological tools, potentially revolutionizing precision medicine and biotechnology.PROTEUS is a revolutionary AI-driven biological system that uses directed evolution inside mammalian cells to quickly discover and engineer molecules optimized for medical and biotech solutions. By combining AI-style problem-solving with accelerated biological evolution, this technology opens new frontiers in drug design, gene therapy, and molecular biology tailored to function effectively within the human body.